The El Clasico has become a spectacle that garners interest worldwide including that of yours truly. This season’s first battle sees the top 2 sides face off at the Bernabeu with the home side looking to cut the 3 point gap separating them from Barcelona and the top of the table. The return of Lionel Messi only adds to the sense of occasion surrounding this fixture.
The upcoming El Clasico will be the first one this century that does not feature Xavi Hernandez and Iker Casillas. The fixture we have known in the past ten or so years had predominantly the same set of furiously passionate players, fighting it out more for bragging rights than anything else. The match has now moved on to a newer generation of players, giving the high profile fixture a new, different and exciting look.
Three points separate the two sides at the moment and it’s hard to look past the duo to find this season’s front-runners for the La Liga and indeed the Champions League, as one can view here on Bonus Code Bets. The big news for Real Madrid is whether or not French striker Karim Benzema is fit, both mentally as well as physically. The striker is amidst a whole lot of negative press exposing his involvement in a blackmailing case. A late injury scare earlier this week wasn’t of any particular help either.
As for Barcelona, word has started to spread about Messi training again. The Argentine has been out of the game for several weeks now and would love to make a comeback for this game and cause some drama.
El Clasico is one of the most covered matches: several media outlets if not all will have a build up to the game and discuss about some of the best players out there. As always with Outside of the Boot, we’re going to duck under that kind of hype and have a go at some of the younger players that these two European giants are currently cultivating in their academies and first teams.
We’ve taken the liberty to form a combined XI of players from both teams who exclusively belong to the Talent Radar circle. Players out on loan have been included as well.
Defense: In between the sticks is Real Madrid’s Carlos Abad who is in the Castilla squad on loan from Tenerife. The back four comprises of Alejandro Grimaldo, Diego Llorente, currently on loan to Rayo Vallecano, Austrian Philipp Lienhart and Mathias Rodriguez. A small mention to Gimaldo, who is currently the captain of the Barcelona B team.
Midfield: New summer signing from Inter Milan, Mateo Kovavic comes in to midfield and is joined by Sergi Samper and Lucas Silva. Playing behind the strikers is young Croatian star, Alen Halilovic who is sure to entertain the crowd.
Forward: An all Barcelona pair form the focal point of this XI’s attack. Munir El Haddadi teams up with teammate Sandro Ramirez to terrorize any opposition defence.
- Talent Radar Young Players Team of the Week #24: Niklas Sule, Kingsley Coman, and more - March 15, 2016
- Talent Radar Young Players Team of the Week #21: Alireza Jahanbaksh, Jurgen Locadia and more - February 16, 2016
- Talent Radar Young Goalkeeper Rankings: Jack Butland reclaims top position - February 16, 2016
